Seventeen, Sixteen...

Ok, I'm going to have to group two days into one!!

17 days....16 days....

QUESTION:

Can I say the following sentence with confindence?

 "You should imitate me, because in doing so, you will be imitating Christ!"

Hmmm, the apostle Paul said something to that effect, didn't he? He was so comfortable with his faith that he invited others to observe his behavior close enough to actually follow in his steps. That in and of itself is amazing, but to go one step beyond that and claim that if they did, in fact, imitate him then they would be imitating Christ! How incredible he must have been! Yet he boasted not in himself, he gave full credit to the Lord. What a place to be in his Christian walk.

What a goal to have! To say those words with confidence!

That's the question our preacher posed to us all Sunday morning.

From the "hmmm", "oooh", & "ummm"s I heard, it gave many others the same pause it gave me. What a thought. It's similar to one I often used

when teaching the young gals at Bible camp.

How true it is that someone is ALWAYS watching us, whether we are aware of it or not. While we live our day to day lives, those around us are observing our body language, our facial expressions. They're listening to the words we say & the tone of voice we use. They take note of the jokes we choose to laugh at & the activities we participate in.

With this in mind, just consider the past 24 hours.

Would I be able to tell someone that they could imitate me in all of those areas?

Have my actions been loving & kind? Have I treated others the way I would want them to treat me? Has my speech been pure & considerate?

Would a stranger who encountered me be able to tell that I am a Christian?

If I knew that Christ would be there with me, would I have done anything differently?

He was there.

He is always there!

What a great start & focus for the week. It is my prayer that I will portray Christ to those around me. I am so thankful that He lived perfectly on this earth so I have the opportunity to follow Him and to spend eternity in His presence.

I owe all to Him.